Portable face-mask for telephone use.



L. G. STOCKTON.

PORTABLE PAGE MASK FOR TELEPHONE UsE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 10, 1909.

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cyfl' Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

Q m 2W% L; G. STOCKTON. PORTABLE PAGE MASK FOR TELEPHONE UsE. APPLICATION FILED JULY 10, 1909.

1 021 434 Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

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PORTABLE FACE MASK FOR TELEPHONE USE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 10, 1909.

1,021,434. 7 Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

avvueutoz L. O. STOGKTON.

- PORT ABLE FACE MASK FOR TELEPHONE USE.

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1,021,434. Patented Mar.26,1912.

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UNITED s'r irrns PATENT OFFICE.

LTNCOLN C. STOCKTON, 01 DENVER, COLORADO, ASSIGNOR TO THE ACME UTILITY COMPANY, .01 DENVER, COLORADO, A CORPORATTOI T OF COLORADO.

PORTABLE FACE-MASK roe TELEPHONE USE.

Specification of'Letters Patent.

Patented. Mar. 26,1912.

Application filedluly 10, 1909. Serial No. 507,006.-

To all whom it may concern: p

Be it known that'I, L N -QLN O. STOCK- TON, citizen of the United States, residing in'the cityand county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Face- Masks for Telephone Use; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will.

enable others-skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and'use the same, referencebeing had'to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form apart of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements i-n' be used with the same facility as if the mask were not, employed. When this device is used, it may be detachably' mounted upon the telephone or it may, if desired, be attaehed to the head of the user. In any event, the vibrations of the air within the mask. are prevented. from escaping or, in a sense, are condensed and directed against the 'dia hragm of the transmitter, thus making 1t practicable to telephone by speaking much lower than is practicable without. In fact, even a whisper within the mask is sufficient to-be heard plainly. at the/ opposite end. of the line. At

the same time, 'the sound of the voice is' confined within the mask, thu's giving the user the sameadvantage, so far as secrecyand privacy are concerned, that he would have'in' a closed booth.

The mask is provided at its outer open extremity with a yielding member surrounding its outer edge and against which the face of the user is pressed, thus making the Within the mask is locateda tube, detachably applied, and h in it outer extremity close to the mou of S ser,-while its inner extremity enters e' outh-piece of the transmitter. Within the ter shell of themask is placed asort'of-lin'ing or wall, separated from the out t 'wall leaving an air space wh ch comthe device is provided with a window,

' the user may .look for the purpose 0 municat-es with the mask at its inner extremity, while its outer extremity is in communication with the atmosphere, through a series of perforations, thus admitting pure air during the operation of telephoning.

Having briefly outlined my improved construction, I willv proceed to describe the same in detail, reference being made to the accompanying drawing, inwhich is illustrated an embodiment thereof.

In this drawing: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a telephone equipped with my improved face mask. Fig. 2 is a rear view of the mask shown in detail. Fig. 3 isafront view of the same. Fig. 4 is a vertical, lonitudinal section of the mask. Fig. 5 isa ront view, showing a member applied to-- the front of the-mask, and readily removable for sanitary purposes. Fig. 6 is a detail view of the said member, shown in aposi'tion the reverse from that illustratedyin Fig. 5. Fig.- 7 is a section taken on the line 7-7, Fig. 6. Fig.8 is a vertical lon 'tudinal section taken on the line 8-8, ig. 5. Fig. 9;is a rear view, showing a modified form of construction. Fig. 10 is a front view of the same, showing a neumatic face tube, artly broken away.

COHStlUCtlOILShOWII in Figs; 9 and-10.

The same reference, characters. indicate the same-partsin all-the views. y

' Let the numeral 5 designate the body; of

, ig. 11 is aver- 1310111 ongitudinal section of the form of the mask, which is hollow, and open at both extremities, its forward. extremity being somewhat'larger than its rear extremity and fashioned to. conform to the general contour of the. face of a person, so that the face will fit tightly thereagainst, and close to thefront opening. 6. This opening" is surrounded by a yielding stri of material 7, preferably eomposed of rub er. The inner edge 8 of this strip protrudes into the opening 6 at the outer edge thereof, thus forming .a' yielding member a inst which the face of the user while telephoning. i

The upper part of the rear'extremity of gua transparent member 9, through which examini-ng notes or data, while using the telephone,

and while his face is against the mask. .Be-

low this window'is an. opening 10 to receive the mouth piece 12'ofthe transmitter, which 1 av-- I protrudes thereinto, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. The openinglO is surrounded by a strip of soft material 13, which rests against the transmitter around the mouthpiece, and forms a close joint to prevent the escape of sound vibrations. On opp'osite sides of the upper part of the-opening 10,

. yielding hook-shaped members 14 are lowound paper 26, adapted to be drawn from thereof, for sanitary purposes. I In the form of construction shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 8, a shield 27' is removably applied to the :face of the mask. This shield has an opening 28 of approximately the the mask, and also afford a means of escape,

for the impure, exhaled air. The forward extremity of the wall 15 is secured to the front wall 17 of the mask as shown at 18.

Mounted within the space surrounded by the inner wall of the mask is a speaking tube 19, which is connected with hooks 20, with which the mask is provided on the inside. Both extremities of this tube are open. Its outer extremity is outwardly flared as shown at 21.

its inner extremity,- which enters the mouth-- piece of the transmitter, as heretofore explained. A a

,In the form of construction, shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, a roller 22 is journaled in cars 23, projecting upwardly from a plate 24, attached to the top of the mask, and having. a. vertically and upwardly projecting member 25. Upon this roller is the roll and occupy a position over thefront of the mask. This paper is provided with openings to: register, or approximately register, with the opening in the front of the mask, whereby the paper surrounds the opening in the mask and engages the front part'thereof, "so that when the mask is in use, the faceof the user engages the-paper.

This paper is adapted-tobe torn oil. and the plate member 125 over which the paper isdrawn, acts as a sort ofknife forthis pur pose. With'this formofconstruction, each person who uses the mask is supposed to part draw apiece of paper over the front size of the front opening in the mask. The

--=body 29 oftheshield overlaps the front. part .of the mask,':covering theyielding member 7". The-'inneredge oft-he bod "of theshield merges into a rr m w 'ich The tube tapers from its outer ex= tremity which is largest, gradually toward a short flange 31 is turned outwardly forming a groove 32, adapted to receive the inner edge of the rubber member 7, when the shield is applied. In order to attach the shield to the mask, it is only necessary to press the inner edge of the shield against the yielding member 7, when the latter will bend sufliciently to allow its inner edge to enter the groove 32, thus securin the shield in place upon the mask. The s ield, however, may be readily removed and another one applied for' sanitary purposes. It is supposed that a number of these shields will be always accessible, so that each person who uses the telephone may have a new shield, if he so desires.

In the form of construction shown in Figs; 9, 10 and 11, the face of the-mask surrounding the opening therein, is equipped with a pneumatic tube 33, which the face of the user engages, While talking through the telephone. As shown in this form of con struction, there is a forwardly located, relatively short partition member 34, which is bent outwardly, forminga grooved seat 35, for the tube 33. This outwardly grooved part is secured to the outer extremity of the inner wall 15. This wall 15 in this form of construction, is shown corrugated and the grooves of the corrugations form channels or passages 36, communicating at their inner extremities with the mask,.and at their outer extremities with the atmosphere, "as is best illustrated in Fig. 11. I

As shown in the drawing, the speaking .tube 19 is equipped with elastic bands 38,

one on each side, which are conriected'with the hooks 20. p

" The mask is equipped with a short inflation tube 37, communicating with the rela tively large face tube 33. The inflation tube is; provided at its outer extremity with a check valve 39.

From the foregoing description, the use ofmy improved face mask will be readily understood.

. Assuming that the device, is ap lied to the transmitter of a'telephone, in t e manner heretofore explained," the userof the-telephone simply presses his face against the front part of themask. If the paper roll attachment-is applied, he first pulls down a piece of paper,- the same bein indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3' and designated by the letter A. This'paper shield covers the front part of the mask, where the latter is en: gagedby' the face of'the'user and should be torn ofl as soon as theconversation'is completed. If the removable shield 27, illustrated .in' Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive, is employed, one of theseshields'is applied to the yielding member 7 of the "mask, in the mannerheretofore explained. When the face of the useri-s in position, the mouthis'ciose to the Y out'er extremity "'of'the tube 19, 'whiie the inner extremity of the tube enters the mouth piece of the transmitter. Under these. circumstances, the. user of the telephone proceeds, as in the ordinary manner, except that if he desires, he may lower his. voice to a Whisper, and be distinctly heard at the other end of the line. This lowering of the voice also prevents the possibility of others in the room from hearing the conversation. The construction of the mask, however, is such that when the voice is at the ordinary pitch or tone used in conversation, it will not be heard by others in the -00m 1 ,Attention is called to the fact that the speaking tube 19 is preferably composed of some cheap material, as-paper. This tube is readily removable for sanitary purposes. Having thus described my invention, what claim is: L. A face mask of the class described, comprising a shell open at both ends, its ex- I tremities being of unequal size, the smaller extremity being applied tothe telephone transmitter, the mouth-piece of the latter entering the opening therein, while the opening at the opposite extremity of the Y hood is adapted: to conform to the contour of the face, and is surrounded by a yieldingmember, to form a tight joint-i as the face is pressed against the same, while using the telephone, and a speaking-tube located within the shell and having" one extremity adjacent the' mouth of the user, while its opposite extremity enters the mouth piece of the transmitter fo'r-the-purpose set forth.

2. face mask comprising an outer shell, open at both ends, an inner: wall separated from the outer shell to form an intervening compartment, the inner wall being shorterthan the outer wall, whereby the intervening space communicates at its inner extremity with the cavlty of the mask, the forward ex tremity of the. said space being in comm unication with :.,the atmosphere, the inner extremity of. the mask having an opening adapted to. receive the 'mouth-piece of the telephone transmitter, while the outer extremity is shaped to fit the face of a 'person,

using thetelepl-lone, and a speaking tube located within the Imask and mounted upon the'innen wall thereof,- for the purpose. set

forth. 1

3. A face mask, of the class described,

comprising a shell open at bothend's, its rear extremity being smaller than its forward extrem1ty,'the opening in the rear extremity 'bemg adapted to receive the mouth-piece of the-transmitter of a telephone, the rear extremity of the mask also having a window, above the mouth-piece opening, the forward extremity of the mask being; rovided with a-yieldin member surroun ing theface opening, or thepurpose, set forth.

4 A. face mask for use with. telephones, comprisinga. shellhaving a ..face opening atv its forward extremity and a mouth-piece opening atits opposite extremity, the last named extremity having a window located above the mouthpiece opening, an inner wall forming an air space between itself 'a'nd the shell, the said space being in communication with the atmosphere at one extremity and with the cavity ofthe mask-at its opposite extremity, and a speaking tube located within the mask, substantially as described.

5. A face mask for use with telephones,- comprising a shell, having its rear extremity open to receive the mouth-piece of a telephone transmitter and equipped with retaining hooks, adapted to engage the trans mitter, the rear extremity of the device being also provided 'with a'window located above the mouth-piece opening, the forwardextremity of the device having a yielding member surrounding the face'opening there- 'in, the device having an inner wall, forming an air space, which is in communication with the cavity of the mask and also with the atmosphere, and a speaking tube located .within' the mask between the mouth- )iece 1 of the transmitter, and the mouth 0 the speaker, when the device is in use.

6. A face mask of the class described, comprising a casing open at both ends, one extremity being adapted to receive the mouth-piece of the telephone transmitter, while the other extremity is shaped to engage the face of" the user, and a readily removable speaking tube, located within the device, one extremity being adjacent. the mouth of the user, while the other extremityis adjacent the'mouth-piece of the telephone transmitter, l

7. A face. mask for use with telephones, comprising a shell, the inner extremity being smaller than" the opposite extremity,

the said inner extremity being adapted to shell, a yielding memberpositioned in the 115 said. trough. and "surrounding the innerperiphery of the face opening, asmeans of forming substantially asdescribed.

8; A face mask for use with telephones, comprising an inner and outer shell, one ex.- tremity of the shell having a cushioned opening adapted to receive the mouth-piece of a telephone transmitter, while. the outer extremity is a cushion for the "face ofi the user,

rovided with s'ilitabl e cush doned 'eans or engaging the face of the 1 user, a speaking tube flexibly suspended fr6m the inner wall of the shell at a centrally located position between the openings of the mask, one end of said tube to enter the mouth-piece of a telephonmtransmitter,

while the opposite end is arranged to come into contact with the mouth of the user, substantially as described.

9. A telephone of the character specified comprising an acoustic shell having an opening at one end to receive the mouthpiece of a telephone and provided at said end with a window and with attaching means and havingthe opposite end of saidshell constructed to fit close against the face of the person using the telephone.

10. A device for use in conjunction with a telephone for excluding noise and contining the sound to be transmitted, said device comprising an acoustic shell and having the telephone-located at one end thereof and provided at the opposite end with a breathlng rnn consistlng of a port on provided with aseriesofsmall.openings.

11. A device for use in con]unct1on with a telephone for excluding noise and confining the sound to be transn'iitted, said device comprising an acoustic shell and having the telephone located at one end thereof and provided at the opposite end with abreathing rim consisting of a portion provided with a series of small openings, and a batlle consisting of a band arranged opposite the breathing rim and having a breathing space for the entrance and exit of air but serving to-interrupt soufidvvaves.

12. A telephone attachment of the char actor specified comprising an acoustic shell having its front portion provided with a forwardly converged breathing l'll'll provided with a series of openings.

13. A. telephone attachment of the character specified comprising an acoustic shell having its front portion provided with a forwardly converged breathing Illll provided with a series of openings, and a flexible lip at the inner edge of the breathing rim to insure a close fit between the breathing rim and the face of the person using the telephone.

14. A device for use in conjunction with a telephone for securing secrecy and increasing the acoustics of the telephone line said device comprising an acoustic shell having -the telephone at one end and constructed to receive the face of the person using the telephone at its opposite end, a sound concentrator and director located Withinthe acoustic shell, and means forsecuring the sound concentrator within the acoustic shell to admit of the ready removal of said concentrator.

In testimony whereof I aflix my sigma-- tale in presence of two witnesses.

LINCOLN (J. STOCKTON.

l/Vitnesses A. J. OBnmn, JESSIE HOBART. 

